Religious beliefs are often a barrier to even considering divorce as an option when divorce may actually be part of your spiritual journey.
The fact that I chose divorce doesn’t mean I didn’t pray about it. It doesn’t mean I made the decisions without talking to God. The fact that it messes up the order in the church doesn’t mean this isn’t part of your spiritual journey.
RMJ
RMJ is the only openly-divorced person in her church and one of her challenges post-divorce is figuring out what it means to be a divorced Christian woman.
The Divorce Coach Says
If divorce is in conflict with your faith, it doesn’t necessarily mean that divorce is not an option or that you have to give up your faith. What it means is that more research is needed.
One option is to consider legal alternatives to divorce such as legal separation or annulment.
Another is to identify what you think your God would say about your situation and how your own faith looks upon divorce. Then consider how your present faith community views divorce. You may never have separated your own views on divorce from those of your community before and now is a good time to do that. Consider who you might approach to guide you through this, maybe a spiritual adviser within your community or an independent adviser. If your community isn’t supportive then consider whether that’s a calling for you to work to change that or if you need to find a more supportive community.
As challenging as it may be, now is not the time to abandon your faith but rather a time to allow your faith to deepen and grow.